In a fascinating new study, scientists documented 34 attempts by wild killer whales to give food to humans. These rare cases spanned four oceans and 20 years. Some happened near boats, others in open water or even from the shore. 



The events highlight the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/killer-whales-use-kelp-to-massage-and-groom-each-other/">orcas</a>’ possible interest in humans and raise important questions about whale intelligence, communication, and social behavior.



“Orcas often share food with each other - it’s a prosocial activity and a way that they build relationships with each other,” said study lead author Jared Towers, of <a href="https://baycetology.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bay Cetology</a> in British Columbia, Canada. “That they also share with humans may show their interest in relating to us as well.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-social-lives-of-killer-whales">Social lives of killer whales</h2>



Orcas live some of the most complex social lives in the animal kingdom. They stick together in tight-knit family groups called pods, usually led by an older matriarch. 



These family units aren’t just casual gatherings - they’re lifelong bonds. Calves stay with their mothers for life, swimming, hunting, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/photographer-captures-killer-whales-wearing-fish-hats/">playing together</a>. 



In some regions, pods form larger communities or clans that share unique vocal dialects, kind of like cultural accents passed down through generations. This tight social structure helps them coordinate during hunts and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/killer-whales-use-kelp-to-massage-and-groom-each-other/">protect each other</a> from threats.



But it’s not all business. Orcas socialize for the joy of it too. They engage in what clearly looks like play - tossing kelp, breaching dramatically, or nudging one another during underwater games. 



They form friendships beyond their pods and even flirt, showing preferences and personalities. These interactions suggest that orcas have emotional lives and a sense of identity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-orcas-gave-humans">What orcas gave humans</h2>



The 34 incidents involved six distinct populations of killer <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-helps-humans-have-20-minute-conversation-with-humpback-whale-named-twain/">whales</a>. They offered humans a total of 18 species: six fish, five mammals, three invertebrates, two birds, one reptile, and even one piece of seaweed.



In 97 percent of these cases, the orcas waited for a human response. Some hovered for several minutes. 



On several occasions, they tried again when the humans ignored or returned the offering. In two especially curious cases, whales retrieved birds after humans returned them, only to offer them again.



This behavior could be a form of interspecies curiosity, communication, or even social learning. As the authors suggest, these events might represent "generalized altruism" - an advanced trait observed in only a few social animals.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-exploration-more-than-play">Exploration more than play</h2>



Though play was observed in 38 percent of the interactions, the researchers argue most cases were not playful. The age of the whales varied widely, and many offered whole, fresh prey. 



In over 75 percent of ignored cases, the whales later used the prey for themselves or their group. This suggests the offerings had purpose and value, not just entertainment.



Curiosity-driven behavior, distinct from play, seemed a stronger motivator. As the study explains, animals often explore to reduce uncertainty. 



Offering food to humans might help orcas learn how we respond, just as they would with unfamiliar members of their own <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/whales-blow-bubble-smoke-rings-near-humans-to-communicate/">species</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-deep-social-intelligence-at-work">Deep social intelligence at work</h2>



Some whales returned the same item to humans multiple times. Others acted in pairs or small groups. 



Most of the 34 events involved a single whale separating from a larger group. This suggests the act was not for show. Rather, it might reflect the whale's individual decision to interact.



Interestingly, killer <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-dolphin-brains-evolved-to-see-underwater-by-using-sound-echolocation/">whales</a> have also been documented cooperating with human fishers in places like Australia and Russia. The authors noted that this history could influence modern interactions, especially as human activity increases near their habitats.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-whales-may-view-humans-as-companions">Whales may view humans as companions</h2>



Killer whales rank second only to humans in brain-to-body ratio. They also show advanced emotional and social behavior. 



These traits support complex social learning, reciprocal behavior, and possibly even empathy.



“Offering items to humans could simultaneously include opportunities for killer whales to practice learned cultural behavior, explore or play and in so doing learn about, manipulate or develop relationships with us,” the researchers wrote.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-humans-should-not-approach-whales">Humans should not approach whales</h2>



Despite the remarkable nature of these encounters, the researchers urge caution. Orcas can show complex and sometimes unpredictable behavior. 



While no wild killer whale has killed a person, some interactions have been intense. They warn against seeking out such encounters or encouraging the behavior without proper permissions.



Most of these whales belonged to populations that hunt near the surface and share prey frequently. 



No deep-water, fish-only populations were involved. This suggests that cooperative surface hunting may lead to more frequent and visible interspecies interactions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-complex-minds-of-whales-and-humans">Complex minds of whales and humans</h2>



The findings challenge our assumptions about human-animal relationships. If orcas are experimenting with ways to relate to us, it means they recognize us not as threats, but as potential social partners.



These whales are not just predators. They are thinkers, observers, and maybe, in some way, explorers of culture, curiosity, memory, learning, and emotion. 



Their actions suggest complex minds in both whales and humans, capable of choice, empathy, and communication.



The study is published in the <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2026-29805-001.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal of Comparative Psychology</a>. 



-----



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Killer whales are attempting to bond with humans, according to many observations

In a fascinating new study, scientists documented 34 attempts by wild killer whales to give food to humans. These rare cases spanned four oceans and 20 years. Some happened near boats, others in open water or even from the shore. The events highlight the orcas’ possible interest in humans and raise important questions about whale intelligence, communication, and social behavior. “Orcas often share food with each other - it’s a prosocial activity and a way that they build relationships with each other,” said study lead author Jared...

Tourists may be carelessly spreading COVID-19 to wild mountain gorillas by taking selfies with them. A team of researchers at <a href="https://www.brookes.ac.uk/">Oxford Brookes University</a> analyzed nearly 1,000 Instagram posts containing photos taken with mountain gorillas in East <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/shipwrecked-ivory-sheds-new-light-on-african-forest-elephants/">Africa</a>.

The study revealed that most of the tourists were close enough to the animals to transmit a virus or infection, and they were not wearing face masks. 

"The risk of disease transmission between visitors and gorillas is very concerning. It is vital that we strengthen and enforce tour regulations to ensure gorilla trekking practices do not further threaten these already imperiled great apes," said study lead author Gaspard Van Hamme.

In January 2021, captive gorillas at San Diego Zoo tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, providing new evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic can affect great apes. 

"In the photos we analyzed, we found that face masks were rarely worn by tourists visiting gorillas and that brings potential for disease transmission between people and the gorillas they visit," said study co-author Dr. Magdalena Svensson. "With people all over the world getting more used to wearing face masks we have hope that in the future wearing face masks will become common practice in gorilla trekking."

Mountain gorillas are native to East Africa, and can currently be found in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Rwanda. After decades of threats from human activities, gorilla numbers have started to bounce back in recent years. There are now an estimated 1,063 individuals.

"This research provides a valuable perspective on how much tourists are willing to share their too close encounters with mountain gorillas through Instagram, which creates expectations for future tourists," explained Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka.

"It highlights a great need for responsible tourism to provide adequate protection while minimizing disease transmission, especially now during the COVID-19 pandemic."

Trekking is a valuable way to generate income to support mountain gorilla conservation. At the same time, large numbers of visitors can negatively impact the wildlife and their environment.

One of the main guidelines for visitors is to maintain a minimum distance of seven meters away from the gorillas, but the new research shows that such guidelines are not adequately followed or enforced.

Russell A. Mittermeier is the Chair of the IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group, who was not involved in the study.

"It has become apparent in the past few years that studies of anthroponotic and zoonotic disease spread are crucial to the field of primate conservation. With that in mind, it is very exciting to see the new research on this topic coming out of the Primate Conservation Group at Oxford Brookes University," said Mittermeier.

"While this study focused on one species, the mountain gorilla, the lessons learned are also applicable to many other primate species that are increasingly coming into contact with people. This line of research will certainly become more important in the future."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/25758314">People and Nature</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tourists taking selfies with mountain gorillas put them at risk of disease

Tourists may be carelessly spreading COVID-19 to wild mountain gorillas...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/songbirds-rely-on-an-autism-gene-for-memorization/">Birds</a> grow thicker down feathers to survive the cold conditions in high elevations, according to a new study. The researchers examined feathers across 249 species of Himalayan songbirds using a collection of bird specimens at the <a href="http://naturalhistory.si.edu/">Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History</a>.

To regulate their body temperature, birds grow a layer of fluffy down insulation between their bodies and their outermost feathers.

The study revealed that birds living at higher elevations have more down feathers than birds living at lower elevations. The experts also found that smaller birds, which lose heat faster than large birds, grow longer down feathers in proportion to their body size.

The research highlights the importance of feathers in helping birds adapt to their environment, and suggests that adding down may be a common strategy among songbirds. The findings may ultimately help researchers predict which birds are most vulnerable to climate change by simply studying their feathers.

"The Himalayas are seeing some of the fastest rates of warming on Earth," said study lead author Sahas Barve. "At the same time, climate change is driving an increase in the frequency and intensity of extremely cold events like snowstorms. Being able to accurately predict the temperatures a bird can withstand could give us a new tool to predict how certain species might respond to climate change."

During a frigid morning of field work in the Sho-kharkh forest of the Himalayas, Barve observed a tiny goldcrest dashing across the treetops. He wondered how this little bird, which weighed about as much as a teaspoon of sugar, was able to thrive in frigid conditions. Barve set out to investigate whether Himalayan birds wear their own version of down jackets.

While previous studies suggested that birds from colder habitats had extra down feathers, Barve said this is the first study to analyze this pattern for such a large number of species in cold environments and across 15,000 feet of elevation.

The researchers used a microscope to image the chest feathers of 1,715 specimens from the high-altitude Himalayan Mountains. The team analyzed the photos to determine how long each feather's downy section was relative to its total length. 

The analysis revealed that the birds from the highest elevations, as well as the smallest birds, tended to have the highest proportion of down on their body feathers. Small birds had down feathers that were three times as long as the largest birds, while high-elevation birds had up to 25 percent more down.

"Seeing this correlation across so many species makes our findings more general and lets us say these results suggest all passerine birds may show this pattern," said Barve. "And we never would have been able to look at so many different species and get at this more general pattern of evolution without the Smithsonian's collections."

Study co-author Carla Dove said she was excited to work together with Barve to use the Smithsonian's collections in a new way. 

"Sahas looked at more than 1,700 specimens. Having them all in one place in downtown Washington, D.C., as opposed to having to go to the Himalayas and study these birds in the wild, obviously makes a big difference. It allowed him to gather the data he needed quickly before the COVID lockdowns swept the globe, and then work on the analysis remotely."

According to Dove, the potential to use these results to predict how some birds will cope with climate change demonstrates the value of museum collections. 

"We have more than 620,000 bird specimens collected over the past 200 years waiting for studies like this. We don't know what our specimens will be used for down the line; that's why we have to maintain them and keep enhancing them. These specimens from the past can be used to predict the future."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/16000587">Ecography</a>. 

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Birds grow more down feathers in higher elevations

Birds grow thicker down feathers to survive the cold conditions...

Around 10,000 years ago, the largest mammals in North America completely vanished. Megafauna including mammoths, ground sloths, and giant beavers were widely believed to have fallen victim to overhunting by rapidly expanding human populations, with climate change playing a significant role in the extinctions as well. 

But now, experts at the <a href="https://www.ice.mpg.de/">Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology</a> have found that climate change actually played a leading role in the disappearance of North American megafauna. 

Based on a new statistical modeling approach, the study shows that a drastic decrease in temperatures around 13,000 years ago likely initiated the decline of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/vanishing-giants-study-reveals-shocking-decline-of-large-mammals-in-africa/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">giant mammal populations</a>. 

For the last six decades, the prevailing theory was that the arrival of specialized "big-game" hunters in North America about 14,000 years ago led to the rapid decline of large mammals. 

It has also been debated that there is not enough archaeological evidence that overhunting was persistent or widespread enough to cause extinctions. Instead, dramatic climate and ecological changes may have been responsible for megafauna extinctions.

Around the time of the extinction event, there were two major climate changes, beginning with a period of abrupt warming that began around 14,700 years ago. This climate warming was followed by a cold snap around 12,900 years ago during which the Northern Hemisphere returned to near-glacial conditions. 

"A common approach has been to try to determine the timing of megafauna extinctions and to see how they align with human arrival in the Americas or some climatic event," said study co-lead author Mathew Stewart. 

"However, extinction is a process - meaning that it unfolds over some span of time - and so to understand what caused the demise of North America's megafauna, it's crucial that we understand how their populations fluctuated in the lead up to extinction. Without those long-term patterns, all we can see are rough coincidences."

Traditionally, experts have used the radiocarbon record to estimate past population sizes, but there is a level of uncertainty associated with radiocarbon dates.

"As a result, you can end up seeing trends in the data that don't really exist, making this method rather unsuitable for capturing changes in past population levels," explained study co-lead author W. Christopher Carleton.

"Using simulation studies where we know what the real patterns in the data are, we have been able to show that the new method does not have the same problems. As a result, our method is able to do a much better job capturing through-time changes in population levels using the radiocarbon record."

To investigate, the researchers applied a new statistical approach that was developed by Carleton. The results show that megafauna populations fluctuated in response to climate change.

"Megafauna populations appear to have been increasing as North American began to warm around 14,700 years ago," said Stewart. "But we then see a shift in this trend around 12,900 years ago as North America began to drastically cool, and shortly after this we begin to see the extinctions of megafauna occur."

While the findings suggest that the return to near glacial conditions was the direct cause for megafauna extinctions, human activities such as overhunting and habitat modification likely played an indirect role. 

"We must consider the ecological changes associated with these climate changes at both a continental and regional scale if we want to have a proper understanding of what drove these extinctions," explained study senior author Huw Groucutt. 

"Humans also aren't completely off the hook, as it remains possible that they played a more nuanced role in the megafauna extinctions than simple overkill models suggest."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/ncomms">Nature Communications</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

North America's largest mammals were a casualty of climate change

Around 10,000 years ago, the largest mammals in North America...

A major shift in atmospheric <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/active-travel-can-greatly-reduce-co2-emissions-in-the-city/">CO2</a> levels may have helped dinosaurs make a 6,500-mile journey from South America to Greenland, according to a new study from the <a href="https://www.earth.columbia.edu/">Earth Institute at Columbia University</a>.

A group of long-necked, herbivorous dinosaurs known as sauropodomorphs arrived in Greenland sometime between 225 and 205 million years ago. 

The new study has matched ancient magnetism patterns in rock layers at fossil sites across South America, Arizona, New Jersey, Europe, and Greenland, to determine that the dinosaurs completed this migration around 214 million years ago. At this time, all of the continents were still connected as part of the supercontinent Pangea.

Fossil records show that sauropodomorphs first appeared in Argentina and Brazil about 230 million years ago, which raises the question of why it took them so long to expand into the Northern Hemisphere.

"In principle, the dinosaurs could have walked from almost one pole to the other," explained study co-author Dennis Kent. "There was no ocean in between. There were no big mountains. And yet it took 15 million years. It's as if snails could have done it faster."

Kent estimated that if a dinosaur herd walked only one mile per day, it would take less than 20 years to make the journey between South America and Greenland.

Up until about 215 million years ago, the Triassic period had experienced extremely high levels of CO2 at around 4,000 parts per million. Between 215 and 212 million years ago, the CO2 concentration dropped by half. This would have been the same time that sauropodomorphs set out on their long journey to Greenland.

The researchers theorize that the plummeting CO2 levels and the sauropodomorph migration are linked. They suggest that the milder levels of CO2 may have helped to remove climatic barriers that had limited the sauropodomorphs to South America.

The study authors explained that on a planet supercharged with CO2, there were likely climate extremes that would have prevented the dinosaurs from migrating. "We know that with higher CO2, the dry gets drier and the wet gets wetter," said Kent.

When the CO2 levels dipped 215 to 212 million years ago, the tropical regions may have become more mild, and the arid regions could have become less dry. Certain passageways may have developed, such as along rivers or lakes, that would have helped sustain the herbivores along the way to Greenland.

"Once they arrived in Greenland, it looked like they settled in. They hung around as a long fossil record after that." 

Kent said the idea that a dip in CO2 could have helped these dinosaurs to overcome a climatic barrier is speculative but plausible, and it seems to be supported by the fossil record.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Dinosaur migration was made possible by a major climate shift

A major shift in atmospheric CO2 levels may have helped...

An invasive fly from Asia that is known for attacking fruit <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-cereal-crops-have-a-secret-weapon-for-deeper-roots/">crops</a> is very particular about where it chooses to lay its eggs. The spotted wing drosophila fly, D. suzukii, prefers to lay its eggs in places that have not been visited by other flies, according to a new study from <a href="https://www.ncsu.edu/">North Carolina State University</a>.

The discovery raises new questions about how the flies can tell which pieces of fruit are untarnished, and about what this could mean for pest control.

Although Drosophila suzukii is native to east Asia, the fruit fly has spread rapidly across Africa, Europe, and both North and South America over the past 10 to 15 years. 

These invasive flies lay their eggs in ripe fruit, which poses problems for farmers.

"Ultimately, we're talking about hundreds of millions of dollars in potential crop losses and increases in pest-management costs each year in the United States," said study co-author Professor Hannah Burrack. "These costs have driven some small growers out of business.

"The first step toward addressing an invasive pest species is understanding it. And two fundamental questions that we had are: Which plants will this species attack? And why does it pick those plants?"

While observing Drosophila invasions on farms, the experts noticed that the flies' egg-laying behavior varied according to the size of the infestation. If they were part of a smaller population, the flies laid only a few eggs in each piece of fruit, and only when the fruit was ripe. 

On the other hand, if the flies were part of a large population, more eggs were laid in each piece of fruit. To investigate, the researchers conducted a series of experiments. 

The surprising results revealed that, when given a choice, D. suzukii preferred to lay its eggs in fruit that other flies had never visited.

"It doesn't matter if the other flies lay eggs," said Professor Burrack. "It doesn't even matter if the other flies are male or female. It only matters if other flies have touched a piece of fruit. If untouched fruit is available, D. suzukii will reject fruit that other flies have visited."

"We're not sure if the flies leave behind a chemical or bacterial marker, or something else entirely - but the flies can tell where other flies have been."

The researchers said that the next step is to determine what, exactly, the Drosophila suzukii flies are detecting as they scope out the fruit.

"If we can get a better understanding of what drives the behavior of this species, that could inform the development of new pest-control techniques," said Professor Burrack. "We're not making any promises, but this is a significant crop pest - and the more we know, the better."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep">Scientific Reports</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Drosophila flies prefer to lay their eggs in untouched fruit

An invasive fly from Asia that is known for attacking...

Ross Ice Shelf

Scientists have discovered some strange and unexpected <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sponges-dna-sea-creatures/">creatures</a> living far beneath the Antarctic ice shelf, according to a new study published by <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/">Frontiers</a>. 

This is the first time a hard substrate community has been found deep beneath an ice shelf, and the discovery contradicts previous theories of what types of life could survive there.

During an expedition to the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf, which is located in the southeastern Weddell Sea, researchers drilled through 900 meters of ice. At a distance of 260 kilometers from the ice front, the site was under complete darkness with temperatures of -2.2 degree Celsius. 

While very few animals have ever been observed in such conditions, scientists found that a large boulder on the seafloor was covered with sponge-like stationary animals. 

"This discovery is one of those fortunate accidents that pushes ideas in a different direction and shows us that Antarctic marine life is incredibly special and amazingly adapted to a frozen world," said study lead author Dr. Huw Griffiths of the British Antarctic Survey.

"Our discovery raises so many more questions than it answers, such as how did they get there? What are they eating? How long have they been there? How common are these boulders covered in life? Are these the same species as we see outside the ice shelf or are they new species? And what would happen to these communities if the ice shelf collapsed?"

Floating ice shelves cover more that 1.5 million square kilometers of the Antarctic continental ice shelf, yet only a total area similar in size to a tennis court has been explored. 

"Prior to this study, our knowledge of these habitats and the life they support was restricted to what has been observed from eight boreholes drilled for geological and glaciological studies," wrote the researchers.

It has been widely assumed that whatever life forms could survive beneath ice shelves become less abundant as you move farther away from open water and sunlight. In the past, some small mobile scavengers and predators like fish and worms have been spotted in these habitats. 

The researchers said that the local currents suggest this community is somewhere between 625 and 1500 kilometers in the direction of water flow from the nearest region of photosynthesis. 

There are some organisms that depend on nutrients from glacial melts or chemicals from methane seeps to survive in such extremities, but little is known about the new creatures until the researchers have an opportunity to study them further.

"To answer our questions we will have to find a way of getting up close with these animals and their environment - and that's under 900 meters of ice, 260km away from the ships where our labs are," said Dr. Griffiths. "This means that as polar scientists, we are going to have to find new and innovative ways to study them and answer all the new questions we have."

The experts noted that with the climate crisis and the collapse of these ice shelves, time is running out to study and protect these ecosystems.

"This new evidence requires us to rethink our ideas with regard to the diversity of community types found under ice shelves, the key factors which control their distribution and their vulnerability to environmental change and ice shelf collapse."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science">Frontiers in Marine Science</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Strange creatures found beneath the Antarctic ice shelf

Scientists have discovered some strange and unexpected creatures living far...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/">University of Bristol</a> has revealed that tropical paper wasps help out neighboring <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bumblebees-change-their-lifestyle-after-establishing-a-nest/">nests</a> by babysitting when there are extra workers available. The findings suggest that when their closest kin are less in need, the wasps seek to help more distant relatives.

"These wasps can act like rich family members lending a hand to their second cousins. If there's not much more you can do to help your immediate family, you can turn your attention to the extended family," explained study lead author Dr. Patrick Kennedy.

Around the Panama Canal, the researchers observed 20,000 baby wasps and their caregivers to investigate the usefulness of workers in colonies of different sizes. The study showed that as the number of colony members rises, the worker bees become less useful due to a surplus of help.

"By helping more distant relatives who are more in need - those living next door with fewer carers - workers can pass on more copies of their genes overall," said study co-author Professor Andy Radford. "We believe that similar principles of diminishing returns might explain seemingly paradoxical acts of altruism in many other social animals."

Dr. Kennedy said the fact that these paper wasps help at other colonies is really bizarre when you consider that most wasps, ants, and bees are extremely hostile to outsiders. 'To solve this puzzling behavior, we combined mathematical modelling with our detailed field observations."

"We ended up being stung a lot. But it was worth it, because our results show that worker wasps can become redundant at home. A wasp on a colony with few larvae but lots of other workers becomes almost useless: the best thing to do is to babysit the larvae of other relatives."

The evolution of "altruism" in animals had remained a mystery for many decades since the time of Charles Darwin.

"In 1964, the legendary biologist W. D. Hamilton figured out the cardinal rule of animal altruism. Lavish help on your family because they share many of your genes. Copies of your genes will triumph in the population," said Professor Radford.

However, the behavior of tropical paper wasps baffled Hamilton back in 1964. He was surprised to notice that Polistes wasps were leaving their close family in their home nests and flying off to help the neighbors, who are less closely related.

Previously, study co-author Professor Seirian Sumner reported that over half the workers in a Panamanian population of paper wasps were helping on multiple nests. This comes as a surprise considering that wasps usually viciously attack outsiders, and suggests that something unusual is going on.

"Wasps offer amazing windows into the evolution of selflessness," said Professor Sumner. "There is so much going on in a wasp nest: power struggles, self-sacrifice, groups battling against the odds to survive... If we want to understand how societies evolve, we should look more deeply at wasps."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/natecolevol/">Nature Ecology and Evolution</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paper wasps offer clues about the evolution of selflessness

A new study led by the University of Bristol has...

Throughout the animal kingdom, there are many species that form monogamous bonds with their mates just like humans. In a new study from <a href="https://duke.edu/">Duke University</a>, experts have discovered that the brain circuitry that supports lasting love in some species is not the same in others.

For the investigation, the researchers compared monogamous and promiscuous species within a closely related group of primates known as lemurs.

Red-bellied lemurs and mongoose lemurs are two of the only types of this group in which male-female pairs stick together to raise their young and defend their territory.

Once two lemurs have bonded, they spend about one-third of their lifetime together. The partners spend hours grooming each other or huddled side by side. 

Overall, monogamy is rare among mammals and remains somewhat of a mystery to biologists. While about 90 percent of bird species are usually faithful to one partner, only three to five percent of mammals practice fidelity. "It's an uncommon arrangement," said study lead author Nicholas Grebe.

The researchers set out to investigate what makes some species biologically inclined to monogamy. Previous studies have found evidence that two hormones released during mating, oxytocin and vasopressin, have an influence on lasting love according to how they affect the brain.

When experts compared the brains of monogamous prairie voles with two other vole species that behave promiscuously, they found that prairie voles had more "docking sites" for the hormones, especially in parts of the brain's reward system.

If these "cuddle chemicals" enhance lasting love in voles, the researchers theorized they may have the same influence on humans. The study was focused on lemurs because they are a closer genetic match to humans than voles.

The researchers used an imaging technique called autoradiography on 12 lemurs that had died of natural causes at the Duke Lemur Center. They used the images to map binding sites for oxytocin and vasopressin.

The team compared the brain imaging results in lemurs with previous results in voles and monkeys. This analysis revealed some noticeable differences in the density and distribution of hormone receptors. 

Essentially, oxytocin and vasopressin were found to act on different parts of the brain in lemurs, which means they may also have different effects depending on their target cell's location.

According to Grebe, oxytocin may be the "potion of devotion" for voles, but it may be the combined actions and interactions of multiple brain chemicals - along with ecological factors - that create lasting bonds in lemurs and other primates like humans.

"There are probably a number of different ways through which monogamy is instantiated within the brain, and it depends on what animals we're looking at," said Grebe. "There's more going on than we originally thought."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep">Scientific Reports</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The basis of lasting love is more complex than expected

Throughout the animal kingdom, there are many species that form...

For animals in the Rocky Mountains, global warming is literally an uphill battle. A long-term study from <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">CU Boulder</a> has revealed that golden-mantled ground squirrels, along with many other small mammals, are climbing higher into the mountains to escape unsuitably warm <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rising-temperatures-linked-to-low-quality-diets-among-children/">temperatures</a>.

Study lead author Christy McCain is an associate professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and a curator of vertebrates at the CU Museum of Natural History.

"It's frightening. We've been talking about climate change in the Rockies for a long time, but I think we can say that this is a sign that things are now responding and responding quite drastically," said Professor McCain.

The golden-mantled ground squirrel is a popular sight among tourists that has an appearance similar to a chipmunk. The squirrels live in conifer forests in the Rockies and several other western mountain ranges.

"It is likely one of the most photographed mammals in Rocky Mountain National Park as it poses and preens on rocks near the roadside and in campgrounds," said Professor McCain. "They hibernate in winter, are territorial in the summer, and they make distinctive alarm calls to notify each other of nearby dangers."

The research was focused on nearly 50 species of small mammals located in the Front Range and San Juan Rockies, including mice, shrews, and even the yellow-bellied marmot.

The experts determined that the ranges of these small mammals have shifted by an average more than 400 feet up in elevation since the 1980s. Meanwhile, the ground squirrels and other "montane mammals" which already live at higher elevations have shifted by up to 1,100 feet.

According to the researchers, this trend could squeeze many animals out of Colorado altogether. Professor McCain said that the small mammals may be bellwethers for larger and increasingly urgent changes in the Rocky Mountains.

"I was expecting that we would see something between 100 to 200 meters, but we saw a lot more. This is way bigger than the change that has been determined in other mountain regions around the world."

According to Professor McCain, the study paints a stark picture of a mountain range in crisis. The good news is that there may still be time to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to protect the animals and natural landscapes.

"It's a wake-up call," said Professor McCain. "We have to start taking this seriously immediately if we want to have healthy mountains and ecosystems."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/19399170">Ecology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Squirrels are climbing high to escape global warming

For animals in the Rocky Mountains, global warming is literally...

A study from <a href="https://www.bangor.ac.uk/">Bangor University</a> is providing new insight into how migratory birds manage to reorient themselves after venturing off course. The researchers found that reed warblers detect geomagnetic signatures that can guide them back to their migratory route after they have been displaced.

The study is the first of its kind to reveal that birds have the perceptive ability to navigate toward a magnetic position that they have experienced before along their normal migration route.

"What these birds are achieving is 'true navigation,'" explained study co-author Dr. Dmitry Kishkinev. "In other words, they are able to return to a known goal after displacement to a completely unknown location without relying on familiar surroundings, cues that emanate from the destination, or information collected during the outward journey."

Different locations on Earth have distinct geomagnetic signatures based on factors such as the strength of the geomagnetic field or the angle between directions to the geographic and magnetic North poles.

For the investigation, adult reed warblers were held in captivity for a short period of time. Because they were adults, the birds were already familiar with their migration route and its general magnetic signatures.

Once they were released, the warblers were exposed to a simulation of the Earth's magnetic signature at a location thousands of miles away from the birds' natural migratory range.

Despite all the sensory clues that showed the birds they were physically located elsewhere, they behaved based on the magnetic signals that they were experiencing. As a result, the reed warblers oriented themselves to fly in a direction which would lead them from the simulated location back to their migratory path.

The findings show that Earth's magnetic field is key in guiding reed warblers when they are off course.

"The overriding impulse was to respond to the magnetic information they were receiving," explained study co-author Richard Holland. 

"What our current work shows is that birds are able to sense that they are beyond the bounds of the magnetic fields that are familiar to them from their year-round movements, and are able to extrapolate their position sufficiently from the signals. This fascinating ability enables bird to navigate towards their normal migration route."

"We have already shown that the reed warblers use the same magnetic cues experienced within their natural range, but this study shows that they can extrapolate what they understand about how the magnetic field varies in space far beyond any previous experience they have had," said study co-author Florian Packmor.

While the research was focused on the Eurasian reed warbler, the researchers expect their findings can be applied to other migrating songbirds.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Reed warblers use Earth's magnetic field to get back on track

A study from Bangor University is providing new insight into...

Whales,Of,The,North,Shore,Quebec

The songs of fin whales can be used to survey the structure of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/massive-concentrations-of-microplastics-found-on-the-seafloor-2/">seafloor</a>, according to a new study from <a href="https://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University</a>. The experts report that fin whale songs contain signals that are reflected and refracted within the crust, including the sediment and the solid rock layers beneath. 

Study co-author John Nabelek explained that these signals can be used to determine the thickness of the layers as well as other information relevant to seismic research.

"People in the past have used whale calls to track whales and study whale behavior. We thought maybe we can study the Earth using those calls," said Professor Nabelek. "What we discovered is that whale calls may serve as a complement to traditional passive seismic research methods."

The songs of fin whales occur at frequencies known to travel well across the ocean floor, persisting for up to hours at a time. The vocalizations be as loud as large ships, and are often captured by seismometer (OBS) stations on the seafloor that monitor earthquake activity. 

Professor Nabelek said the study serves as a proof of concept that could provide new avenues for using data from whale calls in research.

"This expands the use of data that is already being collected. It shows these animal vocalizations are useful not just for understanding the animals, but also understanding their environment."

In collaboration with study lead author Vaclav M. Kuna, Professor Nabelek analyzed earthquakes from a network of 54 underwater seismometers positioned along the Blanco transform fault. At its closest point, the fault is around 100 miles off Cape Blanco on the coast of Oregon.

The team recognized strong signals on the seismometers that correlated with the presence of fin whales in the area.

"After each whale call, if you look closely at the seismometer data, there is a response from the Earth," said Professor Nabelek.

The calls recorded at the seismometer can provide information that allows researchers to estimate and map the structure of the crust. Based on a series of whale songs recorded by three seismometers, the researchers were able to pinpoint the whale's location and use the vibrations to create images of the Earth's crust layers.

According to Professor Nabelek, the current traditional method for imaging of the crust can be expensive and permits can be difficult to obtain because the work involves deploying air guns. While the whale songs are captured at a lower resolution, they are also much less invasive.

"The data from the whale songs is useful but it doesn't completely replace the standard methods," noted Professor Nabelek. "This method is useful for investigating the Earth's oceanic crust where standard science survey methods are not available."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencemag.org/">Science</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fin whale songs can help map the structure of the Earth's crust

The songs of fin whales can be used to survey...

In a new study published by <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/">Frontiers</a>, four pigs learned how to play video games by moving a joystick with their snouts. According to the experts, the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/changing-ocean-soundscapes-impact-animals-worldwide/">animals</a> demonstrated that they understood the concept of the computer games despite having some physical limitations. 

The researchers said the fact that these far-sighted animals with no opposable thumbs could succeed at the task is "remarkable."

The study was focused on two Yorkshire pigs and two Panepinto micro pigs. All four animals were trained to manipulate a joystick with their snouts in front of a computer monitor. Next, they were taught how to play a video game where the goal was to move a cursor toward up to four target walls on the screen.

Each pig performed well above chance, which indicates that the animals were fully aware of the connection between the movement of the joystick and the cursor on the computer screen. 

"It is no small feat for an animal to grasp the concept that the behavior they are performing is having an effect elsewhere. That pigs can do this to any degree should give us pause as to what else they are capable of learning and how such learning may impact them," said study lead author Dr. Candace Croney.

Previous research has shown that pigs are capable of various types of learning ranging from basic obedience commands to more complex behaviors.

The current study revealed that pigs become more persistent as a result of social contact. Verbal encouragement motivated them to complete the most challenging tasks. 

"This sort of study is important because, as with any sentient beings, how we interact with pigs and what we do to them impacts and matters to them," said Dr. Croney. 

"We therefore have an ethical obligation to understand how pigs acquire information, and what they are capable of learning and remembering, because it ultimately has implications for how they perceive their interactions with us and their environments."

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology">Frontiers in Psychology</a>.

---

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Pigs can learn how to play video games

In a new study published by Frontiers, four pigs learned...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



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Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



---



By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



---



By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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